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Sunday, 30 May 2010

The shop has been full of activity this weekend with lots of people coming along to learn how to knit and crochet, how to follow a pattern and i demonstrated lots of new techniques to jazz up their tea cosies.
Over the weekend we have had around 40 people in to the shop to find out more info and to take part in the project.

One of the most wonderful comments, which I have heard a few times from different workshop participants over the past few days, is that this project has inspried people to pick up their needles again after not knitting for years, it didn;t take long for those people to rememeber how it's done!

Many people have said that they thought no one knitted any more, that they thought it was a forgotten craft and that it's really nice to see this project happening in their town centre. I'm really happy that through this project people will continue to knit, some ladies have even said that they would like to start their own knitting club in their local communities after attending the workshops.

Here are some snaps from over the weekend:

Participants ::

Sarah and Lorna from Burnley attended the Learn To Knit Workshop on Saturday and did extremely well learning how to cast on, knit, purl and cast off. Sarah also learned how to add in a new yarn colour and says she would like to make a stripey tea cosy.

This weekend I've had a few ladies from my local knitting club in Salford working in the shop with me. Jan (who writes the blog: Enthusiastic Crochetoholic) has been with me for the whole of the three days has been crocheting and knitting away and is on her 3rd tea cosy already!!

Marie, also from my knitting club, come along to the shop today. Marie always takes part in my community knitting projects and is always really enthusiastic about taking part. She is making a tea cosy from my 'Tea Cozies' book called 'Counting Sheep' - i can't wait to see how it turns out.

Artist Liz Noble visited the shop to make a tea cosy with her mum and friend - they are making a collaborative piece for the project. Liz is the artist who will be covering the bandstand, opposite the shop, with knitted leaves and flowers for the Big Knit event on June 19th.

Cosies ::

Valpuri Vihriala (who writes the blog: Purlpuri Handknits) is based in Manchester and is currently creating her final installation for her Interactive Arts Degree at Manchester Met University. Valpuri is an artist who works with knitting and crochet as her primary medium and commented that this project had given her a well earned break from her uni work! She is currently making a strawberry themed tea cosy.

This wonderful tea cosy has been crocheted by Jan and has been inspired by a particular tea pot from the Towneley collection which has a scalloped pattern in the ceramic design.

I knitted up a fuzzy green tea cosy today and trimmed it with a brown crochet ruffle. Lots of people said that this particular tea cosy has a quirky personality about it... i'm not sure why! but was flattered by the comments. I was inspired by the earthy tones and colours featured on some of the Towneley Tea Pots and by some of the decorative trims painted onto the tea pots.

Thank you to every one who came along to the shop this weekend, i'm really looking forward to next weekend when we shoud have some more stunning tea cosies to show. I have given out lots of patterns to people interested in the project but unable to attend the sessions in the shop.

Wednesday, 26 May 2010

Tea Cosies For Towneley isn't the only knitting project currently taking place this summer in Burnley Town Centre.

Artist Liz Nobel is making a project for Burnley's Big Knit Day and you can take part in Liz's project by knitting flowers, leaves, bugs, bunting ... all manor of decorative knitted items that will be installed on the band stand on St Jame's street in Burnley Town Centre on the 19th June.

You can download a pattern guide HERE for many wonderful flower and leaf designs.

So get knitting and see your work on display in Burnley Town Centre in June.

This week ArtYarn moved into the shop, or the 'knitting studio' as I am now calling it. With great thanks to Janes Wool Shop in Burnley, and to people who have stopped by to make a yarn donation sover the weekend, we have plenty of yarn and needles to create some super tea cosies for Towneley Hall.

Here are a few snaps from over the first weekend...

The Knitting Studio... come and pay me a visit and have a knit!

Setting up the shop with plenty of yarn and some lovely furniture which has been donated by the Burnley YMCA charity shop.

Isabelle teaching a beginner how its done!

Here she goes again!

Tea cosies in the making!

A very nearly complete tea cosy.

I will next be in the shop, knitting away, on Wednesday morning and then on Friday and Saturday 10-4pm and Sunday 11-3pm. Please come and join me and take part!

Monday, 17 May 2010

ArtYarn are the first of 5 commissioned artists / artists groups to be given the wonderful opportunity of working at The Open Shop Project in Burnley Town Centre.
Visit the Open Shop Project blog to find out more about which other artists will be taking over the space during the summer months:

Saturday, 15 May 2010

We have been testing out some new tea cosy patterns this week, and here is a beautiful finished tea cosy by Sarah. We will be using the tried and tested tea cosy patterns to modify into new knitted creations which will be inspired by the colours, embelishments and shapes of the Towneley Hall tea pot collection.

On friday we payed a visit to Towneley Hall to install 8 pieces of knitting in the gardens. We are joping that these pieces of knitting will stir up some interest for our residence at the old car shop in Burnley Town Centre.
Next week we'll be in Burnley town centre setting up our workspace in the shop and we'll be out and about knitting in local venues around the town. Come and join us !

Monday, 10 May 2010

This week Artyarn will be installing a series of knitted pieces around the beautiful gardens at Towneley Hall in Burnley.

Once they are installed we hope that visitors to Towneley Hall will enjoy discovering them as they stroll around the gardens and that they inspire people to come and take part and visit us during our time as artists in residence at the old Car Shop in Burnley town centre.

For now here is a little preview of some of the knitted pieces we have been making..

KNITTING WORK SHOPS !!

Our taught workshops begin on Saturday 22nd May, so if you would like to learn how to knit make sure you book your place ASAP! before all the spaces get snapped up!

The Saturday workshops are designed to teach absolute beginners knitting skills, so if you have always wanted to learn but don't know how to get started, or you want to refresh your skills, please come along and take part. All materials are provided on the day and it's absolutely free to take part! :)

TO BOOK YOU PLACE PLEASE CONTACT:

info@artyarn.org

laura.rodgers@blackburn.gov.uk

OR RING:

01254 677130

OR POP IN AND SEE US AT THE SHOP TO LET US KNOW YOU WOULD LIKE TO BOOK A PLACE:

The old Car Shop, 14 St James Street, Burnley Town Centre.

(If we aren't in the shop when you call, please post us a note with your name and contact number)

Links:

Welcome...

Welcome to the Artyarn Open Shop Project blog.From the 17th May Artyarn will be residing in the Open Shop Project venue in Burnley Town Centre. Throughout our time in the shop we are inviting the people of Burnley to attend 'Learn To Knit' workshop sessions, open knitting circles and knitting activty sessions. We are also asking workshop and knitting circle participants to contribute to our project inspired by Townley Hall's stunning collection of Art Deco tea pots. We will be knitting up a series of new tea cosies inspired by the styles of the collection to sit along side the Tea Pot trail on the 12-13th June at the Townley Hall Tea Party event. Please visit again to keep up to date with all our activities throughout the project.

About Me

ArtYarn is a collaborative knitting and crochet project coordinated by visual artist Rachael Elwell.
ArtYarn formed in 2008 and continue to collaborate with local community groups, world wide knitting and crochet networks and arts organisations to create gallery installations, public arts projects and creative craft workshops.
ArtYarn are inspired by the versatility of knitting and crochet as an artistic media, as well as the traditional technical aspects of knitting and crochet. This supports the creation of highly crafted art works with a contemporary outcome.
All ArtYarn projects reflect the artistic, social and historical contexts of knitting and crochet, and focus on the tactility of hand manipulated processes. With this, ArtYarn explore individual creative expression and focus projects on devising ways to make knitting and crochet accessible through participatory making.